Fireman s mask



(No Model.)

A. MILLER. FIREMANS MASK.

INVENTOR WITNESSES:

ATTOR N EYS.

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AUGUSTA MILLER, OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK.

FIREIVIANS MASK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 577,926, dated March 2,1897. Application filed April 11, 1896. Serial No. 587,116. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, AUGUSTA MILLER, of Syracuse, in the county ofOnondaga, in the State of New York, have invented new and usefulImprovements in Smoke-Protectors, of which the following, taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, is a full, clear, and exactdescription.

My invention relates to apparatus or devices for preventing theinhalation of smoke or noxious vapors and the asphyxiation resultingtherefrom.

My object is to produce a protector against such inhalation adapted tobe used by firemen, employees of establishments operating s m okehouses,by travelers, and by private persons who are or may be obliged toencounter, enter, or pass through smoke either as a matter of business,or to save life, or for many other purposes.

To that end it consists of a concaved body, somewhat like a mask,constructed of suit able non-combustible material of such form as tosuitably cover part of the front of the head, the face, the chin andprovided with a suitable expansible and elastic closure which fitsclosely and smoke-tight across the top of the head, down the sides ofthe face, and under the chin, and further provided with a suitableopening and a transparent pane of mica or other suitable material topermit vision and with a suitable cup or box holding a sponge andperforated so as to permit the passage of air through it for breathingand at the same time strain out or eliminate the greater part of thenoxious elements of the smoke, suitable means being provided for holdingsaid mask in place. It is constructed as follows, reference being bad tothe accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of thedevice complete and inposition for use. Fig. 2 is a front elevationthereof. Fig. 3 is a rear ele' vation thereof. Fig. 4 is a verticalsection thereof.

a is a frame, of suitable material to properly support, stiffen, andhold in shape the body I), which is substantially of the form shown inthe drawings and is constructed of material, such as asbestos, eithernon-combustible or absolutely impenetrable to smoke and impervious to ornot affected by heat. The frame a is composed of strips which radiatefrom the perforated cup or holder. and supportthe top, bottom, and sidesof the body, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4. In the front in a suitableopening a pane o, of mica or other suitable material, is mounted, and ina lower opening a sponge or other suitable device d is placed, usuallyin a suitable cup or holder 6, having a perforated inner end or covereither hinged to the body of said cup or fitting over or into it like acap. A backing his secured to the sides of said body Z), having itsinner edges shirred or gathered and having an elastic cord or agathering-string in said edges, creating an expansible opening It.

It is operated as follows: A person expands said opening, inserts thefaceinto said body, drawing said shirred edge onto the top of the head,down adjacent to the ears, and under the chin, said edges making asmoke-tight joint, the face of such person being thus in closed withinsaid body, the eyes being opposite said pane for vision, and the mouthadjacent to said sponge for breathing by drawing air through the spongeor expelling it also through it. WVhen drawn in, the air is purified byits passage through the pores of the sponge.

This apparatus fits like a mask or hood over the face, and with it aperson can walk through thick smoke, as in a burning building, or entera smokehouse to labor therein, and can remain in the smoke for a longtime without sickness, injury, or asphyxiation.

A strap on can be used to be passed around the back of the head to holdthe mask in place.

.What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent,isi 1. In a smoke-protector, the frame a composed of radiating strips,combined with an inclosing body h made of some material not aifected byheat, the window 0, and the backing h, made of a different material fromthe body, and having its edges gathered, substantially as described.

2. In a smoke-protector, the perforated cup or holder 6, and thesupporting frame a,

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 6th day of April,1896.

AUGUSTA MILLER.

In presence of 0. WV. SMITH, HOWARD P. DENISON.

